Historic rainfall makes life difficult for river outfitters

Published: Tuesday, July 9, 2013 at 4:30 a.m.

Last Modified: Monday, July 8, 2013 at 6:40 p.m.

Record rainfall that has pushed swollen rivers out of their banks is also dampening profits for area outfitters during what is normally the busiest time of the year.

“Our main source of income is the river tubing and we haven't run any the past five days,” said Steven Houser, owner of Wilderness Cove Tubing in Saluda. “That's been really hard, and it's got us back on our heels a little. It's rough on a business owner. It's like being a farmer — we're totally dependent on the weather.”

With the French Broad River running at an all-time high of 1,220 cubic feet per second, Headwaters Outfitters in Rosman had to cancel its canoe, tubing and kayaking trips for the seventh day in a row Monday, said Director of Operations Allie Kozak. They hoped to resume trips Wednesday, if levels drop enough.

“It was really bad timing, all this rain, but what can you do?” Kozak said, adding that lost income over the holiday weekend will probably force the outfitter to put off replacing some equipment at season's end. “The money we would've made over the Fourth, we had that built into the budget to replace a van. So that'll have to wait until next year.”

Thus far, this summer has been the wettest since the National Weather Service began keeping records in 1869, according to NWS Meteorologist John Tomko. More than 17.4 inches of rain has fallen at the Asheville Regional Airport since June 1, he said, shattering the previous record of 13.34 inches during that time in 1989.

As of midnight Sunday, Tomko said 46.53 inches of rain had fallen at the airport since January, more than 22 inches above normal for this time of year. He said stationary low pressure responsible for last week's deluge is finally weakening, “but the moisture is going to linger for a while,” with thunderstorm chances through next weekend.

“It has cost us a lot of money,” said Jackie Gillespie, whose family owns Green River Cove Tubing near Saluda. “But we couldn't put people on the river as high as it is. They opened up the dam because the lake is full. It's at flood level and it's been up past the banks. The Fourth of July was a disaster.”

Gillespie and Houser said the Green is dropping some, however, and they hope it will recede enough to put visitors back on the water Tuesday or Wednesday. Still, both outfitters said it will be difficult to make up the lost revenue, given the strong crowds they typically draw between July 4 and Saluda's Coon Dog Day.

“Those days are usually very large,” said Houser. “When you lose five days, you're looking at a good percentage loss for the year. It's not a small deal. We only have a small window to make money.”

Tubing and paddling outfitters aren't the only businesses swamped by heavy rains. Fly-fishing guides at Davidson River Outfitters in Pisgah Forest also gave up five days of full bookings when its private, trout-rich stretch of the Davidson jumped into flood stage and the French Broad got too swift and muddy for smallmouth bass fishing.

“So we lost five days of income during the busiest weekend of the year,” said owner Kevin Howell. “The other problem is you had so many people in town for the holiday. Those people may not be back until Labor Day. Those were the hard ones to lose. The local people, you can move them around, but three-quarters of our business is out-of-towners.”

DRO's guides have adapted to the high water by hiking some clients up into headwater streams, where the water is clear and less swift. But not everybody wants to forsake the bigger trout the Davidson is famous for, Howell said, and some don't want to venture that far from town. He expected his guides to be back on the Davidson full-time by mid-week.

“Our prime season runs from mid-February to late November, so we still have plenty of time to make hay,” Howell said. “But some of the guys who are dependent on the Memorial to Labor Day stuff, they just took a big hit.”

<p>Record rainfall that has pushed swollen rivers out of their banks is also dampening profits for area outfitters during what is normally the busiest time of the year. </p><p>“Our main source of income is the river tubing and we haven't run any the past five days,” said Steven Houser, owner of Wilderness Cove Tubing in Saluda. “That's been really hard, and it's got us back on our heels a little. It's rough on a business owner. It's like being a farmer — we're totally dependent on the weather.”</p><p>With the French Broad River running at an all-time high of 1,220 cubic feet per second, Headwaters Outfitters in Rosman had to cancel its canoe, tubing and kayaking trips for the seventh day in a row Monday, said Director of Operations Allie Kozak. They hoped to resume trips Wednesday, if levels drop enough.</p><p>“It was really bad timing, all this rain, but what can you do?” Kozak said, adding that lost income over the holiday weekend will probably force the outfitter to put off replacing some equipment at season's end. “The money we would've made over the Fourth, we had that built into the budget to replace a van. So that'll have to wait until next year.”</p><p>Thus far, this summer has been the wettest since the National Weather Service began keeping records in 1869, according to NWS Meteorologist John Tomko. More than 17.4 inches of rain has fallen at the Asheville Regional Airport since June 1, he said, shattering the previous record of 13.34 inches during that time in 1989.</p><p>As of midnight Sunday, Tomko said 46.53 inches of rain had fallen at the airport since January, more than 22 inches above normal for this time of year. He said stationary low pressure responsible for last week's deluge is finally weakening, “but the moisture is going to linger for a while,” with thunderstorm chances through next weekend. </p><p>“It has cost us a lot of money,” said Jackie Gillespie, whose family owns Green River Cove Tubing near Saluda. “But we couldn't put people on the river as high as it is. They opened up the dam because the lake is full. It's at flood level and it's been up past the banks. The Fourth of July was a disaster.”</p><p>Gillespie and Houser said the Green is dropping some, however, and they hope it will recede enough to put visitors back on the water Tuesday or Wednesday. Still, both outfitters said it will be difficult to make up the lost revenue, given the strong crowds they typically draw between July 4 and Saluda's Coon Dog Day. </p><p>“Those days are usually very large,” said Houser. “When you lose five days, you're looking at a good percentage loss for the year. It's not a small deal. We only have a small window to make money.”</p><p>Tubing and paddling outfitters aren't the only businesses swamped by heavy rains. Fly-fishing guides at Davidson River Outfitters in Pisgah Forest also gave up five days of full bookings when its private, trout-rich stretch of the Davidson jumped into flood stage and the French Broad got too swift and muddy for smallmouth bass fishing.</p><p>“So we lost five days of income during the busiest weekend of the year,” said owner Kevin Howell. “The other problem is you had so many people in town for the holiday. Those people may not be back until Labor Day. Those were the hard ones to lose. The local people, you can move them around, but three-quarters of our business is out-of-towners.”</p><p>DRO's guides have adapted to the high water by hiking some clients up into headwater streams, where the water is clear and less swift. But not everybody wants to forsake the bigger trout the Davidson is famous for, Howell said, and some don't want to venture that far from town. He expected his guides to be back on the Davidson full-time by mid-week.</p><p>“Our prime season runs from mid-February to late November, so we still have plenty of time to make hay,” Howell said. “But some of the guys who are dependent on the Memorial to Labor Day stuff, they just took a big hit.”</p><p>Reach Axtell at 828-694-7860 or than.axtell@blueridgenow.com.</p>